Celery is packed with beneficial nutrients: it contains ascorbic acid (especially abundant in celery leaves), B vitamins, carotenoids, and phytoncides. The root is rich in potassium salts, and celery also provides significant amounts of calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus.
Like other aromatic vegetables, celery has essential oils and various flavor compounds that give it a distinct, pleasant taste and aroma. These essential oils have disinfectant and antiseptic properties. Celery and dishes made from it can stimulate appetite and improve digestion.
People with stomach or duodenal ulcers should avoid celery, because its essential oils can stimulate the digestive glands. People with nephritis, hepatitis, or gout should also limit their celery intake.
There are several cultivated varieties of celery: leaf, stalk, and root. The leaves of leaf celery are used as a seasoning for soups and for fish and meat dishes. Raw stalks are often used in salads, while cooked stalks make a classic side dish for meat and fish. The root celery’s edible tubers can be eaten raw or cooked, stewed, or fried.
You can create delicious salads using the root and stalks of celery. Wash the root, apples, and carrots. Grate them coarsely, mix them together, and dress with mayonnaise and lemon juice.
Wash the stalks, sort them, chop them finely, mix them with grated cheese, and dress with sour cream or mayonnaise.
Sauté the washed, finely chopped stalks, add sour cream to the stalks, sprinkle with grated cheese, and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
